This week is passing quietly in the local Polish scrap market, as mills have completed their scrap purchases for May and exports are slow, but still observed.
The fundamentals in the local scrap market have not changed, as overall material availability continues to be low and new scrap is still more abundant than old scrap. Sources believe there is no room for further declines, so June’s new round of purchases will be stable or slightly upward. “I expect June to be stable or maybe to go up a bit, as [scrap] collection prices are still high” one of them commented, adding, “However, now it’s too early to make predictions”. Other sources are more pessimistic and do not know what to expect for next month.
As for exports, local collection prices for HMS I scrap stand at €260/mt DAP, stable week on week, but “incoming material is slow and the same applies to sales”, a Polish scrap exporter told SteelOrbis, adding that freight rates are quite high at the moment. Another source described the market as “very quiet now, as summer is approaching”.
Moreover, Poland completed its first round of elections on May 18, and the new round will be held on June 1. “The [market] mood hasn’t changed so far. We will have to wait until the end of both rounds,” a source commented.
In the meantime, Polish steelworkers are protesting in Warsaw against the European Union climate policies, according to media reports. They claim that new European regulations are damaging the Polish steel industry, which is highly energy-intensive, and that the Green Deal needs to be revised. They also claim that high energy costs are the main reason for the crisis in Polish industry, which is why they are - among other requests - asking for a price cap for electricity in energy-intensive sectors.